Amazon had plans to set up its second headquarters in Long Island City, Queens. It would have resulted in thousands of jobs, leaving us unsurprised by surveys showing that 70 percent of New Yorkers wanted HQ2. That's when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) started complaining about corporate welfare and the city's billions of dollars in subsidies for Amazon. She helped sink the project and convinced Jeff Bezos to find another city to set up shop. AOC celebrated the news on Twitter and in the halls of Congress.
Other New Yorkers, including Gov. Andrew Cuomo, were, let's say, less than thrilled with Ocasio-Cortez's intervention. Cuomo appeared most upset, indirectly rebuking the freshman lawmaker for putting her "narrow political interests" over her community's needs.
NEW: Gov. Andrew Cuomo: "A small group politicians put their own narrow political interests above their community...The New York State Senate has done tremendous damage. They should be held accountable for this lost economic opportunity." https://t.co/kbwAiG1Fxs pic.twitter.com/8Mn0iSjLtq
— Evan McMurry (@evanmcmurry) February 14, 2019
Private citizens agreed, casting AOC as the "villain" in the story.
While the frustrated Amazon walked away, a new New York Post report suggests it was only temporary. The outlet recently learned from sources that the company is now looking at Manhattan’s West Side.
The tech giant has been in talks with owners of two shiny new skyscrapers located just one block west of Penn Station — the newly built One Manhattan West and its soon-to-be sister project, Two Manhattan West, sources tell The Post.
The online retailer is seeking “at least 100,000 square feet or much more” — just to start, one well-placed source said. (NY Post)
The James A. Farley building is also of interest to Amazon, according to the Post's sources. But, as noted, the original tax breaks they would have expected in its move to Long Island City won't be available for its Manhattan location.
The mayor, perhaps more focused on his 2020 presidential campaign, is doing little to help. The city is very "jaded" about the corporation's potential real estate, De Blasio said on Tuesday. So, if Amazon wants to move in, "they’re going to have to do it on their own.”
Ocasio-Cortez has yet to comment on the news.
Amazon is setting up headquarters in two other locations, Northern Virginia and Nashville, Tennessee.